KFC has appointed its first female Colonel Sanders.
The fried-chicken chain revealed that Reba McEntire will appear as the Colonel in its latest marketing campaign, Business Insider reports.
As the new the face of KFC’s Smoky Mountain BBQ chicken, the country music icon will sing in commercials and swap between roles as herself and Colonel Sanders.
“It’s something that, in a way, you can kind of poke fun at yourself by dressing up as the colonel,” McEntire told Business Insider. “But, in a way it’s very respectable because he’s been a part of our growing-up years.”
Billy Zane, Darrell Hammond, and Norm Macdonald have all played the role of Colonel Sanders in the past.
“We really look for someone who embodies the values of Kentucky Fried Chicken,” said KFC CMO Andrea Zahumensky. “You think about an entrepreneurial spirit. Our colonel is a showman through and through.”
Despite some skepticism, relaunching the Colonel Sanders campaign in 2015 has brought KFC considerable success. A report of same-store sales growth is expected in early February.